Encore
by mayfair22
Summary: Having had to grow up without her mother, Paige Grimaldi comes to New York to find answers. And what better way to know the story of Blair Waldorf than to hear it from Dan Humphrey...
1. Chapter 1

_AN- This is my most ambitious project to date**-**Not only am I trying a slightly different writing style here but I have never been comfortable with original characters and this story has at least two major original characters, but ultimately it is a Dan/Blair story. However, a major part of this story would be in flashbacks-mostly Dan's memory._

_One thing to remember though is that whatever has happened in cannon has happened in this story as well, except that Blair is not pregnant. I hate that story line and have decided not to use it. Yes, she has a daughter but that comes about later._

_As always, If you can read this legibly, you have my beta bsloths to thank.  
><em>

_Disclaimer- Disclaimed!  
><em>

* * *

><p>"<strong>Show<strong>** me**** a**** Hero ****and ****I**** will ****write**** you ****a ****tragedy****…"**

**F.****Scott**** Fitzgerald**

She waited a second before stretching her hand out to knock at the door. This moment; with her hand poised at the rustic blue-grey door, was the first that she felt truly worried in the last four months. What if she had made the wrong decision? What if these people didn't want to see her? What if she had traveled three thousand miles only to have her questions unanswered?

But she was her father's daughter and if there was one thing she was not going to do today was go back to France without at least meeting the man she had come all this way for. Patting the old, tattered copy of her favorite book in her bag, she squared her shoulders and tapped lightly on the door.

A man, a much younger, handsome man than she had been expecting answered the heavy door, "Um. Can I help you Miss?"

Paige blinked. Maybe she had the wrong address. She looked down at the note she had hurriedly scribbled down minutes before taking her flight, "Is this 455 Water Street?" She asked, her English tinted with a slight accent.

"Uh...Huh," the guy nodded in an affirmative, "are you looking for someone?"

This probably had been a bad idea after all. If she had had any sense she would have listened to Nana and Jean and dropped the crazy hunt for Daniel Humphrey she had embarked on. It was that and more that had made her decide to leave Monaco and come to New York. "Daniel Humphrey," she answered hesitantly, "I'm looking for Mr. Daniel Humphrey."

The guy in front of her smiled, two tiny dimples forming on either cheek, "You're at the right place then; he isn't here though."

"Oh…" Paige looked disappointed, "perhaps, I should come back later then." Thanking him for his time, she turned to walk down the steps.

"Or…you could wait for him inside. He should be in anytime soon."

She weighed the offer in her head and finally took it. She was here; it was now or never anyway.

The dimpled guy led her in, rapidly apologizing for the state of the room as she entered. He was studying and hadn't been expecting company and something else along the lines. Paige listened with one ear, her senses already taking in her surroundings with a critical eye she had been told she had taken both from her mother and her grandmother. This is where he lived, she thought. This is where he worked probably…Wrote those words which had helped her carry through all her high school…Had given her a purpose when four months ago she had felt that nothing again would matter anymore to her.

"Miss? Miss?" a hand on her shoulder brought her back to her surroundings.

"Paige." She answered automatically, "My name is Paige Grimaldi"

" Andrew Vanderwoodsen." He offered a hand out to her. Paige looked slightly taken aback at his forwardness, but took his hand never the less, her fingers only briefly touching his before she casually let it drop and handed her coat to him instead.

Slightly surprised and embarrassed at her coldness, Andrew raised an eyebrow at her. Shrugging, he hung her coat neatly and shoved his hands back into his pockets, "Are you his agent?"

"What? No. Why would you think so?"

He shrugged again, "Thought not. You look too young to be one. It's just that he never gets too many visitors. It's usually just agents or publicists. He isn't exactly Mr. Social Magnet, you know."

Paige smiled a little, something about the way he wrote had always told her that he was a bit of a loner. She found herself thrilled at being able to get his personality traits down. "I'm …" she paused, not sure how best to explain, "a fan."

"A fan?" The man looked at her incredulously, "Uncle Dan actually has one of those?"

"_Uncle_ Dan? You're his nephew?"

"Uh...Huh!" the guy says, explaining how his father was step brothers with Dan, "who did you think I was? His son?"

"No, "Paige shook her head, "Google told me that he has no children, I thought," a deep crimson shade had started to colour her cheeks, "I thought you were his house help."

In spite of himself and not offended in the least, Andrew found himself chuckling. He had never been mistaken for a _house__ help_ before and there was something about this girl which he found intriguing. She was clearly foreign. French, he suspected by her accent. He wondered what it was that had made her travel all the way to Brooklyn. Somehow he had trouble accepting anyone doing that just on a whim. It was impractical, not to mention bloody expensive to most people.

She tried apologizing for her mistake, which he dismissed, "Frankly, with the way you're dressed, one couldn't really blame me for the mistake," she explained.

He laughed out at that. He definitely didn't dress cheap. He knew that and if this girl thought his casual yet designer jeans for a quiet afternoon in weren't good enough he couldn't wait for her to see Dan in one of his plaids, "You have never really met Uncle Dan have you?"

She shook her head, "Never."

"And yet here you are all the way from France, I presume. The man must be a great writer after all"

"_Oui_," She replied and took out a worn out book from her bag and tenderly handed it to him. It was a copy of one of Dan's early books, _Water_ _Stains_, and from the looks of it, it clearly had been read over and over again. Several of the pages were ear marked and as he turned to one of them he saw that there were also small little notes in the margins.

"I have read it seventeen times."

Andrew whistled slightly under his breath. The number didn't surprise him that much. Hell, he had read Harry Potter ten times after all. It was the slight catch in her voice which made him start. There was rawness to it and it made him think that there was much more to her being here than she let on. Stifling his curiosity, he half joked, "I'm afraid to ask how many times have you read his first one. _Inside_, was it?"

"Not as good trust me. I stopped reading it after the fifth time; there was so much drama in it that it seemed like a fantasy most of the times."

Andrew chuckled lightly;clearly, she had no idea how much of it was true; and handed the book carefully back to her. Deciding that he needed to do something to occupy himself before he let his naturally curious mind wonder and he asked this peculiar, not to mention breathtakingly beautiful stranger questions she didn't want to answer to, he asked her if she would like some coffee.

"That would be nice." She said gratefully, "I'm severely jet legged at the moment."

He looked at her strangely, "Did you land _today_?"

Paige replied that in fact she had and knowing the answer with a certainty he had no claim over, Andrew asked her where her luggage was. He knew it like he knew that the sun rose in the east that she had come to Brooklyn straight from the airport.

"It's in the hallway." She replied a little sheepishly. It wasn't like the thought about checking into a hotel first had even crossed her mind before she had boarded her flight. And to think that New York had long favoured in her top destination list. But this time she couldn't bother herself to think about anything else. So, it had been JFK, a cab and a Brooklyn loft for her. For the first time in all her seventeen years she had made an unplanned move, "You know what, I should leave. Maybe I'll drop in tomorrow."

No. no." Andrew stopped her, "you're here. At least meet him before you go. Make yourself comfortable. I'll go get your luggage in," he said before stepping out.

A little bemused and more than a little curious he returned with her four bags. Perhaps she had plans to stay in America for a long time. But then knowing his Aunts he would say that some women just packed that way. Expecting to find her in the living room couch or maybe the kitchen counter, he is slightly surprised to find her standing in the middle of the room which he occupies these days. There is a look of shock mixed with disdain on her face as she looked around her. The next words from her mouth though only made him laugh.

"There is a _garage_ door in the middle of this room!"

* * *

><p>To say that Dan has had a terrible day would be putting the things in their most understated level. He had had a <em>horrible<em> day. Like the kind which was giving him a headache now.

All he needed right now was a stiff drink and perhaps then he could process through the rest of the day. Smiling wryly, Dan remembered how he had often rebuked Chuck for drinking in the middle of the day. These days he couldn't seem to care less.

He opened the door to his house, thanking his lucky starts that he only had Andrew for company. Today was not the day he wanted to deal with anybody else and Andrew was really a blessing. Calm and composed, he carried the kind disposition of both his fathers and when Eric had called Dan from London asking him to take in his son while he completed his medical degree at NYU, Dan had readily agreed. Not that it had gone very well with either Lily or Serena who couldn't understand why Eric would send his son to Brooklyn instead of The Upper East Side. But Dan had been grateful for the company in the young boy. With a wry sense of humor and an easy charm, Andrew was not just a favorite with the entire clan he also played a great buffer when the things across the bridge became a bit strained.

And they had been a bit strained for the past fifteen years…Especially with Serena.

"Uncle Dan? I'm glad you're back…"

"Just a second Andy," Dan cut him off, "I need a drink first."

The young man looked at him in mild irritation; he was used to it by now, "It's two in the afternoon."

"Doesn't matter. Don't care," Dan said, pouring himself a neat peg of whiskey and taking it down in one gulp, "I'm coming back from your Grandmother's place."

"Aunt Jenny still there?"

"And Serena is afraid that there is no sign of her going back," Dan informed, which earned him a knowing smile from his nephew. Twenty years had passed or not, the two women still did not get along and it was no secret to anyone. "Anyway, what is that you were telling me?"

Andrew nodded, "Yeah? There's someone to see you."

Dan looked around his living room, "To see _me_? Where? There's no one here."

"Ummm…She's asleep on my bed. She was jet lagged."

"Oh!" Dan said, shaking his head, "if you were bringing a girl home Andrew, you should have just told me. Why bother with the whole thing about staying home to study for a test? I would have gladly stayed at Lily's place," he paused, thinking it over, "or perhaps booked myself at a hotel."

"No..." Andrew quickly explained, "She really is here to see you. She…"

"Hi!" they are interrupted by a voice from behind.

It's like Dan had seen a ghost. A vision. Slowly, he set his glass down. The hair, the set of her mouth, the porcelain white skin…The way there was an air of superiority, even when she looked uncertain.

There was no mistaking her.

"Hello." The girl at the doorway said again, she swallowed a bit, "I think you knew my mother."

Letting out a breath Dan did not he was holding, he looked at Andrew and then back at the young girl in front of him. Half of him wanted to dismiss it as a very bad dream, half of him couldn't believe how happy he was that he was seeing her here.

Clearing his throat, Dan finally rested his eyes on his very curious nephew, "Andrew, I believe we are in the presence of a Princess…"

Andrew looked from one stunned figure to another and not having anything else to cut the tension with said, "Do I bow?"

* * *

><p><em>AN- If there are any confusions as to who is who, please let me know. There are hopefully many more chapters to come and things should become clearer as the story unfolds.<br>_

__I really hope you like it. _ I am as nervous as I'm excited about it! _Please review, I need all kinds of help and suggestions for this one._  
><em>


	2. Chapter 2

_AN- __Thank __you __so __much __everyone __for __your __great __response to __the __last __chapter. __I __didn__'__t __know __how __you __would respond to __something __so __AU, __but __I__'__m __glad __you __liked __it. __Starry-__a __special __thank __you __to __you. (__Had __you __put __in __a __signed __review __I __would __have __thanked __you __personally.) __I __really __do __appreciate __constructive __criticism __and __I __went __back __to __some __of __your __suggestions and corrected them, __but __I __couldn__'__t bring __myself __to __change __Paige__'__s __name. __I __think __of __her __as __Paige now __and __even __though __I __did __for __a __while __try to __think __of __another __name, __I __just __couldn__'__t._

_This chapter is a bit transitional as I needed to set things for Paige. But I have pulled in a flashback for all who were waiting for Blair to make an appearance. And I'm sorry for the delay but hopefully a much longer chapter will make up for it._

_Thank you bsloths for everything!_

* * *

><p>Andrew looked from one stunned figure to another, and not having anything else to cut the tension with said, "Do I bow?"<p>

He couldn't make up his mind whether he was more amused or more worried about the two people in front of him. Never before had he seen his uncle look so pale and the new entrant's already pale skin seemed to have become whiter. "You know," he said, breaking the silence, "I'm going to go inside and…You know, study." He looked at Dan, "Let me know if you need me." With that he gathered up his scattered books and with a curt "Your highness" to Paige left the room.

Paige waited till the door closed behind Andrew. "I'm P…" she began.

"Scout."

"Excuse me?" She looked curiously at Dan. _Scout?_

"That's what Blair used to call you." He looked at her straight. "Scout," he finished quietly.

A lump was forming in her throat, she could feel it. Swallowing it down, she asked, "_To __Kill __a __Mockingbird_?"

Dan smiled sadly and agreed, "_To __Kill __a __Mockingbird_. She really liked the book and Gregory Peck in whichever role would always make her smile too."

Through a sudden haze of tears, Paige smiled. She loved that book and it had been one of her favorites as well. She remembered how as a child, she had insisted on calling her father _Atticus_ but having no patience or liking for American literature, Louis had not understood and after some time had not cared.

The fact that at least one of her parents shared her love, understood… made her full of joy. "So, you did know her then?"

Ignoring her question, Dan threw one of his own at her, "Would you like something to drink Paige? Maybe something to eat as well?"

"No, thank you," Paige replied politely but the truth was that she was losing her patience ever so slightly. Why was he not giving her a straight answer?

"Okay," Dan turned to his kitchen, "do you mind if I fix myself something then? I'm feeling slightly lightheaded at the moment."

"It's probably all the drinking." Paige supplied dryly, her gaze moving disapprovingly to the many half-empty whiskey bottles in the cabinet.

Dan chuckled, a fond tone that he kept reserved for Andrew unwittingly creeping into his voice, "It probably is. How about I get both of us some coffee then?"

She agreed, and setting herself on the couch opposite him let herself observe him. His hands shook, she noticed. They literally shook as he took out two cups from the cabinet and put on the kettle.

Was he nervous? The thought of it made her own nervousness quell a bit. If the sight of her made him nervous then she knew that she had come to the right place. She was in America to know more about her mother and something told her that Dan Humphrey had all the answers.

"So?" Dan began, handing her a cup.

It was a dainty china she noticed, a huge contrast to the ceramic mug he held in his own hands. She smiled at it; it was just the kind she would use.

"Tell me why you are here."

_Tact __had __hardly __ever __been a __Dan __Humphrey __thing._

But the person to whom the question was directed wasn't perturbed. Paige set her cup down, looked at him straight in the eye and answered, "I want to know more about my mother."

Dan looked into his mug, a muscle working in his jaw, "And what makes you think I can help you?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, genuinely confused, "You just told me that you did know her."

"I did say I knew her," Dan did not glance up from his mug, "but vaguely. I don't think there is anything I can tell you that you will not find in any gossip magazine from twenty years back."

Paige was livid. Was he really lying to her face? "You're lying," she declared.

"Paige…" he looked up at her, a pleading look on his face, but Paige was too angry to care.

"You're lying," she repeated. "I know, I know that you…" she stopped, controlling herself. She couldn't admit to anything yet. She wasn't even sure about anything. Pulling herself together, she asked tersely, "Are you going to help me or not?"

Dan threw her question off once again. "How old are you?" he asked and doing a quick calculation added, "Not yet eighteen I presume."

"I will be in two months." She replied defensively.

"Hmmm…And does your family know that you're here?"

Narrowing her eyes at him, Paige answered truthfully, "Well, Jean does." She hadn't told Nana about it. She couldn't. Her grandmother would have never allowed her to step out of the palace without reason, much less come all the way to New York on her own. Paige had lived a much secured life. A little too much, it seemed. And Nana had always been very watchful. Paige had even asked her about Dan Humphrey but much like everyone around her these days, the only reply she had gotten was that she had heard the name before but there was nothing more she could tell her about him.

"Jean?"

"He's my…" She paused, looking for a suitable English word, "my butler. He's taken care of me since I was a child," she explained.

Dan smiled inwardly but kept a somber face. _Apparently __Paige __had __her __very __own __Dorota._

"What about your father? Hasn't he noticed that you're gone or has he been too busy to care?"

Paige's face immediately closed and with anger evident in her eyes, replied in a monotone, "My father died four months ago Mr. Humphrey and I would request you to refrain from judging my family. You've already made it clear that you only knew them _vaguely_."

Oh! God! How could he have forgotten? Louis's death due to cardiac complications had made the papers of course, but somehow at this moment it had completely escaped him, "I'm sorry, I…I forgot."

Paige got up from her place, not bothering to even touch her coffee. "Would you like me to leave?"

Dan didn't answer; he desperately wanted her to stay. He wanted to help her in every way he could. He wanted to tell her everything, but he just didn't know _how._ He couldn't do it without hurting her and he didn't want to hurt her.

"The Waldorfs shifted to France some years back," he answered after some time, "Maybe…"

"I met grandma before I came here," she cut him off; "She doesn't have the answers I need."

Dan sighed and avoiding looking at her, apologized quietly, "I'm sorry I can't be of any help, Paige. But I don't have answers to your questions either."

"Fine, then." Paige picked up her bag. She knew he was lying, but there was no way she was going to stay here and get insulted some more, "Thank you for your time, Mr. Humphrey. I can see myself out."

"Where will you go?" He asked in spite of himself.

"Well, you've already made it clear that I'm too young to be in America on my own. Maybe I should just go back. My family," she looked at him pointedly, "whatever is left of them, must be worried."

Dan nodded, "At least let me ask Andrew to help you with your luggage."

"No. Thank you. You've already been of enough help." With that Paige Eleanor Grimaldi walked out of the Brooklyn loft she had entered but a few hours ago, leaving a distraught Dan Humphrey to stare at an exquisite, untouched china cup…

_"__Thank __you __Humphrey.__" __Blair __had __daintily __taken __the __cup __from __his __hand, __"__And __I __must __thank __Dorota __for __sending __some __of __my __things __over. __The __longer __I __would __have __had __to __endure__d drinking __tea __in __those __ceramic __mugs __of __yours, __the __sooner __I __would __have __died.__"_

_ Dan __ignored __her __insults,__these __were __hardly __the __things __which __were __bothering __her,__ "__Is __everything __okay?__"_

_ "No," she shook her head, "No, nothing is okay. I'm getting married to Louis in two weeks and I can't get Chuck out of my mind. So no, nothing is okay."_

_ Dan swirled the contents of his own mug, trying to come up with a suitable reply, "So cancel the wedding."_

_ "What? Have you lost your mind? I will not do any such thing. Louis and I will get married."_

_ "So stop letting Chuck get to you."_

_ "I can't help that either," she replied quietly._

_"__Blair?__"_

_"__I __can__'__t __help __it __Dan__. __Louis __is __everything __I __had __ever __wanted __and __Chuck __has __become __every thing __I __would __ever __want. __Louis __has __his __trust __issues, __Chuck __keeps __swinging __between __his __Dr. __Jekyll __and __Mr. __Hyde __personality __traits. __I __don__'__t __know __what __to __do __with __either __of __them.__" _

_ He __looked __at __her i__ntently__,__ "__You __know, __had __you __fallen __in __love __with __me __instead,__you __wouldn__'__t __have __had __to __go __through __any __of __this.__"_

_ Blair __stared __at __him,__ "__Please __be __serious __Humphrey.__"_

_"__That__'__s __the __problem. __You __never __take __me __seriously __Blair.__"_

_"__When __are __you __serious? __Half th__e __time __you__'__re __only __looking __for __ways __to __infuriate __me.__"_

_"__I__'__m __serious __now,__" __he __replied __gravely, __his __entire __being __in __his __words._

_ Blair searched his face and quietly setting her cup down, turned to face him, "You don't really mean that."_

_ Dan looked at her. The anxiety was evident in her voice and her eyes searched his a little unsurely. She was afraid of what he was going to say. Forcing a chuckle, he replied nonchalantly, "Of course not."_

* * *

><p>"Do you know how much I appreciate you letting me stay here? I would have killed myself if I had had to stay at Grandma's place."<p>

Dan glanced up from his computer and observed Andrew curiously; the boy had been acting strange for the past hour, "Well, it was your father's safe house; it only makes sense that it be yours as well."

"Yeah." Andrew agreed, "But I really appreciate the fact that when I needed support, you were there. I can only imagine what some people feel like when they're turned down by someone."

Dan narrowed his eyes at him, "What exactly are you getting at, Andy?"

"What? Me?" he feigned shock, "I'm not getting at anything. It just that had I travelled all the way from Europe to know about my family and then had to be turned down, I would have felt absolutely rotten about it."

Dan sighed; he knew his nephew was right, "You think I dealt too harshly with her."

"Well, you were obviously lying," Andrew shrugged. "I have heard the name Blair Waldorf thrown around in this family more than I have heard my aunts fight."

Dan smiled, "So you were eavesdropping?"

"Tsh…" Andrew made a face, "eavesdropping is such a demeaning term. I _overheard_. Seriously, these walls are way too thin."

"But she has gone now. It's not like I can do anything about it anymore. She is probably at the airport by now." Dan had regretted his decision the moment Paige had stepped out of the door and Andrew reinstating it was only making him feel worse.

Andrew flicked his phone open, "Except that there are no flights to France till eight in the evening. So if I rush, I can still catch her."

"You would do that?" Dan asked, knowing that there was no way Paige would return if he went to collect her. He really had been awfully rude to her.

"The idea may surprise you but the thought of being in the company of a beautiful princess doesn't totally disgust me."

"Andrew!" Dan warned.

The younger man grinned, "I'm kidding. Seriously, I think you need her here more than I do. You have been looking worse than usual since she left and that really is saying something."

Dan smiled, he was grateful that Andrew had taken the decision out of his hand. He couldn't decide between his natural instinct to help someone, Blair's daughter no less, and the awkwardness of it when Paige would ask too many questions. "Where will she stay, though? I'm not letting a seventeen year old stay by herself in a hotel," Dan stated.

"Why? She stays here at the loft of course."

Dan shook his head. It wasn't that great an idea. He had, to give Andrew some privacy, shifted out of his old room and taken Rufus's and they had converted Jenny's room into a combined study- It basically left them with no room for another person and he wasn't even sure how long Paige, if she returned, was planning on staying, "I'm afraid princesses and their mothers alike are never comfortable on this couch, unless you want to take it…."

Andrew, on the other hand, figured that it would be wiser if they just converted their study into a bedroom for her, "I promise the garage door will always be down," he replied cheekily when his suggestion was met by an icy stare from his uncle.

"I promise," he restated, more seriously. "Don't you trust me?"

Dan did trust him. "Okay," he replied reluctantly, "but remember I will be watching. Now hurry before you miss her."

As Andrew hurriedly gathered his things, Dan stopped him, "Bring her back Andy. _Please_."

* * *

><p>It had been sometime since Dan had actually used his favorite place at the fire escape to just think. And today, there was so much he needed to think about.<p>

Paige had returned but had barely acknowledged him. He understood; she was a teenager and she was rightfully angry. Sooner or later, however, she would forgive him for his insensitivity. Meanwhile though he had to figure out how was he going to help her.

Paige wanted to know more about Blair. Wanted to relive the life Blair had lived, know the people that Blair used to know. It was a legitimate wish for a daughter.

_ But __why __him? __Why __had __Paige __chosen __him __of __all __people __to __begin __this __journey __of __hers __from?_

What was he going to tell her when it was his turn to tell her about Blair? How was he going to explain his complicated relationship with Blair to her own daughter? Sighing, Dan stared aimlessly in the dark night outside. Paige and Andrew had both gone off to sleep but he knew that sleep was not coming to him tonight.

With tears springing to his eyes, Dan buried his head in his hands, "Please, help me Blair!"

* * *

><p><em>AN-<em>_Please __leave __a __review. __I __really __really __appreciate __them._


	3. Chapter 3

_AN- Thank you everyone for your support. I hope you like this chapter as well. _

_This hasn't been beta read, so all mistakes are my own._

* * *

><p>Dan woke up to the smell of coffee…It was a smell he hadn't gotten up to in a very long time.<p>

Andrew, still used to his days in London preferred tea and Dan himself had given way to either instant or worse still, a drink in the morning. The smell of fresh coffee beans grinding was one he had almost forgotten.

But not quite...

"Good morning." He greeted Paige as he entered the kitchen. Not surprisingly, he was ignored.

"Is that coffee?" he tried starting a conversation.

Paige sighed. She would have to speak to him sooner or later. Pushing a mug towards him she answered quietly, "I hope you don't mind. I took the liberty with your kitchen."

"Not at all." Dan answered, "I would give my right arm for coffee like this each morning." He took a sip. The hot drink doing wonders for the headache he had due to lack of sleep last night. Even when he had finally gotten to bed, it had only been much of troubled tossing and turning for most of it.

"Where is Andrew?"

"He had an early class." Paige answered, "He did say something about reminding you to pick up your jacket from the cleaners for the gala tomorrow night though."

"Right." Dan answered. The gala. He cleared his throat, "There is this charity thing happening at The Empire tomorrow night. Would you like to come?" He saw the uncertainty on her face, "All of your mother's friends will be there."

Paige's face broke into a soft smile, "I'd like that very much."

Dan nodded, relived. He had taken a right step after all.

"Um…Paige?"

She turned to look at him, "Yes?"

Dan hesitated. He wasn't even sure what he wanted to ask her. Deciding that he could always figure out her real reasons for choosing him to be her stepping stone later, he changed the topic, "I have some work in The UES today and I don't think Andy will be back from NYU before evening, so will you…" he trailed off.

Paige understood though, "I will be fine Mr. Humphrey…"

"Dan Please."

"Mr. Humphrey," she continued uninterrupted, "I have been meaning to see a bit of New York, I'll get to it today."

They fell into an uncomfortable silence for a while; quietly drinking their coffees. Paige was the first to break it, "Do you always write about the same woman?"

Dan was startled, "Excuse me? I didn't quite get you."

"I had always meant to ask you this. You know, each of your heroines? Are they all based on the same woman? Someone you probably knew at some point?"

Dan looked at her, "Some writers just have an imagination Paige. Maybe I don't base my characters on real life."

She laughed, "I could use some really colorful French words for your blatant attempt at lying, Mr. Humphrey." She stirred her coffee casually, "Each of your characters, especially the main girl always has the same traits.

"You think so?"

"I know so," she asserts, "There is Clair, Eliza, Regina, Audrey, Holly. Somehow or the other each one of them seems to be coming from the same place."

"Umm…Which is?"

"There are each elitist, opinioned and often disliked. Even the hero seems to not like her in the beginning, and yet, inevitably falls in love with her in the end." She shrugs, "Makes me wonder if you were following a pattern."

Dan stares at her unblinking for a second, "Except for the very obvious fact that most of them are characters out of an Audrey Hepburn movie, I really don't see the connection," he smiled at her, an uneasiness mixed in it, "I'm sorry Paige, but I have no idea what you're talking about."

* * *

><p>"Not that I listen to anything you say Daniel, but you better say something intelligent soon or I might as well call somebody from my little black book for better entertainment."<p>

Dan didn't answer. His mind was preoccupied.

"Really? What is that has gotten you thinking so hard. You haven't even touched your drink."

Dan looked from his untouched glass to Chuck, "I really have become a lot like you. Haven't I? I'm sitting in The Empire with you; drinking before noon. Again."

Chuck shrugged, his unmistakable smug grin gracing his face, "I seem to rub onto people. Even in the non sexual ways."

Dan shook his head as he took a sip of scotch. How in the world were Chuck and him even sitting in the same room almost every week was a mystery to him, let alone the fact that twenty years had made them something like friends.

At some weird creepy level though, he understood.

Nobody called it so, but his angst ridden writer's mind couldn't help but think of their weekly interaction as a kind of a _'Blair Waldorf Anonymous.'_

Too bad that there were not having much of success.

Here were two men who had both loved …and lost. And had clearly not moved on. Though they each tried. Oh! They tried so hard.

Chuck had fallen into a routine; he made new deals, constructed new hotels and slept with every random woman he had just met. There was not even a pretence that he was looking for something real.

Dan didn't remember the last time he had actually enjoyed a woman's company for more than a few minutes. He wasn't exactly a celibate, fifteen years was too long a time for that but every time he tried to take anything beyond just sex; it felt like betrayal.

And God forbid that the day would come when he would allow Andrew to fix him up on a blind date with one his professors.

Nothing did suck like being stuck in retro though.

"Oh! Really Daniel, if I wanted a sappy company, I would have invited Nathaniel and Serena over. The bliss of marriage and the joy of children have made those two the most boring couple in the whole of Manhattan. What have you got to be so upset about? Drink up, celebrate the fact that we're New York's most eligible bachelors."

Dan chuckled, "_Eligible bachelors,_ Chuck? We are in our forties. There is a whole new generation waiting to take our place."

"Speak for yourself Daniel, I'm still Chuck Bass."

Dan shook his head, hiding a smile. There were some logics, you just couldn't win against.

He drank his scotch in silence for some time and then decided to just spit it out. "Paige is here."

Chuck stilled. His hands freezing in the process of unscrewing a bottle. Slowly, he set the bottle down and turned from the bar to look at Dan more closely, his voice masked and devoid of any emotion, "Paige Who?"

Dan rolled his eyes, he should have known this was not going to be easy, "Paige Grimaldi, Chuck. Princess of Monaco, rings a bell?"

There was no answer, but Dan knew there was no need for one, so he continued, "She just came up to the loft yesterday. I was as surprised as you are right now."

"What makes you think that what Louis' daughter does or does not do makes a difference to me?"

Seriously? He was going to play that card? "Because she is not just Louis' daughter Chuck and you know that. She is…"

Chuck sighed, closing his eyes; he cut off Dan, "Does she look like her?"

Dan laughed, an understanding, empathetic laugh escaping him, "Amazingly so," he said with the awe apparent in his voice. "Except for the fact that she has Louis' eyes, she looks so much like her mother that for the split second that I first saw her I was convinced she had …" he trailed off as his eyes met Chuck's. They never talked about it.

No one ever did.

"But why Brooklyn? Why is she at your place?"

"That," Dan confessed, "I have no clue about. For the time being though she wants to know all about Blair and I plan to help her with that."

"And how are you planning to do that? Some more of those movies nobody else watches?"

"Funny," Dan deadpanned, "but besides the fact that I will be bringing her to your charity gala tomorrow, I plan to make her meet the one person who was closest to Blair."

Chuck raised his eyebrows at him.

Dan grinned, "I am taking Paige to Queens."

* * *

><p>Later that night, Paige very shyly and very tentatively thanked him.<p>

The evening with Darota had gone very pleasant. Of course, there was a lot of excited Polish involved and hugs and even kisses. The older woman had let loose all the affection she had kept in restrains around Blair. And Dan had been pleased to see that Paige had seemed happy with it. It made him wonder though, whether life had been tough on her.

It must have been. It had been tough on him.

* * *

><p>Paige looked at herself in the mirror, a little self consciously. She pushed her hair to one side and then to the other. She wrapped it in a bun and even tied it in a messy braid. It just didn't look correct… She was a princess for God's sake, charity events were a part of her mundane life and yet, her hands almost shook as she tended to herself that evening.<p>

Frustrated, she took another look at the picture she carried with herself. _Really? That's all she did with her hair? Left it alone in loose, long ringlets? No fancy hairstyles? _She took another good look at the picture. It was her favorite and all the time that she had had it folded in her wallet, it had obvious fold marks on it. _Oh! Yes, there was also a hair-band involved._ But she didn't have one at hand to wear at the moment. _Thank fully._

Sighing, Paige let her hair be, let it loose and surprisingly, it didn't look so bad on her. She nodded at her reflection, smiled a little hesitatingly at it and smoothed her dress down. She had decided on a classic cream Dior dress. It wasn't the most in thing in fashion at the moment, but it most resembled the dress in the picture. She hoped it worked on her as well.

This was it. There was no way she could look like her mother more than this…

"How does it take anybody this long to dress?" A distressed Andrew asked for the umpteenth time, "you put on a dress, you brush your hair a bit, put on shoes and you should be ready to go, right?"

Dan chuckled, Andrew of course had had no experience in living with women, "Relax, she'll be out in a second. It's an event at The UES, it's fashionable to be a little late."

"But you wouldn't know the first thing about what is fashionable, would you Andrew? You can try as hard as you like, but you couldn't make yourself look any better than _that_," Paige's voice came from the door way and both men turned to look at her.

Andrew's face split into a grin and if he hadn't been so shocked himself, Dan would have told him to close his mouth.

"Now, my dimples and I both take an offence at that. Last year, I was voted the best looking doctor in making."

"I'm not surprised. I have heard that all that studying can damage one's brain cells. Obviously your judging panel had suffered enough." She turned to face Dan, "All good, Mr. Humphrey?"

Dan nodded, his own face breaking into a soft smile, "Yes, let's go."

He continued to gaze at her as she reluctantly took the arm Andrew offered…The hair, the dress, the way the pale shade matched with her pristine coloring…

_He was not going to stare. No, there was no way on earth that he was going to make this into a scene out of a romantic comedy. Sure, she was here in her wedding dress…Her freaking wedding dress. _

_And he was going to act absolutely normal about it._

"_Humphrey?" Blair called out to him, "Humphrey? I asked you a question."_

"_Huh?" He looked at the floor._

"_Will you stop acting spastic and look at me straight, I called you here for a reason."_

_Dan looked up at her. Big, big mistake. Through a sudden increase in heart rate, he tried answering, "I'm listening. Yes?"_

_Blair bit her lip nervously, the gesture making Dan's breath catch, "How do I look?"_

_This was his chance. This was his chance to give his life some sort of character…He was not going to make it sound like a scene out of a badly written movie. There was no way he was going to look at a woman…Not just another woman, Blair Waldorf in a wedding dress for her marriage to another man, and say something as cheesy as…_

"_You look beautiful."_

_Her face broke settled into a happy smile, "Thank you Humphrey, looks like you have taste after all."_

"_What am I doing here exactly?" he asked._

_Blair shrugged, looking at herself critically in the mirror, "How do you think I should wear my hair? I will be wearing a tiara, so the question is do I go for the Audrey bun or not?"_

_The sad thing was, that he was actually going to answer that for her, "Wear it loose, like in the ringlets you used to have while in Constance."_

_She considered it and then shook his head, "Nah. I don't think so."_

_Dan shrugged, he had tried._

"_By the way," she suddenly spoke, a mischievous glint in her eyes, "I had no idea you were so observant of my hair back in Constance."_

_He probably went more shades of pink in that second than a little girl wears in her first five years, "Uh…um," he changed the subject, "Why exactly do you have me here? Are you replacing me for Serena as your maid of honor by any chance?"_

"_Don't be silly, Humphrey. If I wanted a man to be my maid of honor, I would have asked Nate."_

"_That would be wiser; Nate would definitely look much prettier in a dress."_

_They fell into shared laughter, however, Blair never answered his question...She never told him, why she had wanted him to be by her side._

* * *

><p>"Is that really her?" Nate walked over to him.<p>

"Looks like it," Dan gratefully took the drink he was offered.

"Why now? Why here?"

Dan looked over at where Paige and Serena were talking excitedly. Serena had tears in her eyes and once in a while, a drop fell off onto her cheeks. Paige looked like she was about to cry too, but she hadn't. She was a strong girl...A trait she took from her mother.

"Louis died a few months ago; I guess she decided it was time to know the mother she never did. As for, why here? why me? I'll give you the answer when I have it."

Nate nodded, "How are you taking it?"

Dan gave him a funny look, "What do you mean?"

"Well, there is Chuck, who has barely looked at her but that's him. I don't think he can look at somebody who looks like Blair so much. But, what about you? How are you handling the sudden reminder?"

Dan looked at him strangely, "I know," Nate added, "not everything of course. But I know."

Dan gave his friend a half smile, "Serena?"

Nate shrugged, "A bit. You two clearly have tension. Some of it has got to do with Blair," he looked at him closely, "but that's not all there is to it. Right?"

Dan didn't answer, he couldn't.

He looked at the two women in conversation again; Nate was right. That was not all there was to it.

Serena came to him while he was at the bar. The night had almost ended; it had been an exhausting one. Questions had been fired at him from all sides, When? Why? How? And why hadn't he told anybody about her being in America before?

It had been even more tiring for Paige, but in the three days he had known her, she had looked the happiest today. Her laugh had been easy, less guarded; her smile open and even her sarcasm towards Andrew had carried less mirth.

"Thank you." Serena said to him.

"For what?"

"For bringing her hear."

"You didn't think I was not going to make her meet you and the rest of the family, did you? That's why she is here."

Serena shook her head, "Yeah."

She wavered a bit, closing and opening her mouth, "What Serena?"

"Does she know?"

He froze. He knew what she was talking about. How could he not, but never the less he asked rhetorically, "Does she know what?"

Serena looked at him straight in the eye, "That you're the reason, her mother is dead today."

* * *

><p><em>AN- No surprises there. Everybody had already guessed that I was going to make Blair dead. Apologies to anyone who thought that I was going to go with some twist and have Blair alive but absent. Things like, what was Dan's role in it and stuff would all be answered in the chapters to come.<em>

_I really hope you all liked it. Please do leave a review. And Merry Christmas!_


End file.
